Shut Up, Carlos Beltran. Baseball Needs More Yasiel Puig

Yasiel Puig’s first hit of the NLCS was a laser toward right field, and the rookie flipped the bat as if the ball were leaving the park. Instead, it ricocheted off the wall, and Puig, a Bo Jackson clone, tore out of the batter’s box like Usain Bolt out of the blocks. Before he even reached third base, the rookie began celebrating, thrusting both fists in the air in unison with 53,000 of his biggest fans.

As Lee Jenkins of SI put it, two separate celebrations for one hit. (I’d argue it could prove to be a series-changing hit, but that remains to be seen.) Wrote Jenkins: “Don’t try it at home, or on the local sandlot, because you might end up wearing a fastball in the ribs … Is he pompous or passionate, hot dog or alpha dog?”

I thought the NFL was the no fun league.

Why is baseball so against players showing emotion and having fun?

[Aside: Sheriff Brian McCann is going to be pissed when he finds out Lee Jenkins chimed in on player celebrations.]

What would baseball’s silly, antiquated unwritten rules have permitted there for Puig? Maybe one fist pump at third? Maybe one or two claps?

Carlos Beltran of the Cardinals actually said this after the game: “I don’t think he’s a bad kid. He just doesn’t know. He still thinks he is playing somewhere else. He has a lot of passion, no doubt. He’s got great ability. With time, I think he will learn to be more calm.”

Learn to be more calm?

You’re 22. You just had the biggest hit of your young career. It’s the playoffs. Over 53,000 people are emptying their lungs because you just injected life into the series. Who says you must be calm?

Hey baseball: Lighten up, Francis.